Druidical Rocking-stone.
vine honors. These, in all probability, were aerolites, or meteoric stones, as indeed ap|)ears to be indicated in the fact that Sanchoniathon traces tlieir origin to Ura- nus, or the heavens. Eusebius goes so far as to allege that these stones were believed to have souls, and, ac- cordingly, they were consulted in cases of emergency as being fit exponents of the will of Deity. Uerodian re- fers to a stone of this kind as being consecrated to the sun under the name of Heliogabalus, and preserved in a temple sacred to him in Syria, " where," he says, " there stands not any image made with hands, as among the (Jreeks and Romans, to represent the god, but there is a very large stone, round at the bottom, and terminating in a point, of a conical form, and of a black color, which they say fell down from Jupiter." Sacred stones have frciiuently been worshipped by heathen nations, the Uruids, etc., and traces of the practice are even yet to be found. — Gardner, /'aiVAa of the World, s. v. See Sionk.
Stoning (^|DC, CSn [Talmudie, n^ipo]; Xt&o^w, Xt^o/SoXfoi), as a mode of capital punishment, was or- dained by the Mosaic law (see the Mishna, Simhedr, vii, viii) for the following classes of criminals: 1. All who trenched upon the honor of Jeliovah, i.e. idolaters (Lev. XX, 2; Deut. xvii, 2 sq.) and enticers to idolatry (xiii, 6 sq.); all blasphemers (Lev. xxiv, 10 s<j.; comp. 1 Kings xxi, 10 sq. ; Acts vi, 13; vii, 5(5 sii.). Sabbath- breakers (Numb. XV, 32 sq.), fortune-tellers and sooth- sayers (Lev. XX, 27); also false pro])hets (Deut. xiii, l!; comp. ver. 11; Mishna, Sanhedr. xi, 1); in fine, tho.'ie who had shared in any accursed thing (Josh, vii, 25). See Accursed. 2. Notoriously and incorrigibly dis- obedient sons ( Deut. xxi, 18 sq. ). 3. Brides whose tokens of virginity were wanting (xxii, 20 s(].); and so an affianced woman who had comi)lied with a seducer, together with the seducer himself (ver. 23 sq.). Ac- cording to Jewish criminal procedure (Mishna, Sanhedr. vii, 4), the same penalty was incurred by those who cursed their parents, or had sexual connection with their mother (or step-mother), or daughter-in-law, or with a beast. In the INIosaic statute these last crimes are classed together (Lev. xx, 9 sq.), but no special mode of execution is prescribed; tlie connection, how- ever, seems to point to stoning (comp. Kzek. xvi, 40; xxiii, 47; John viii, 5). Finally, Moses enacted tliis punishment in one case for an animal, namely, one that liad been the means of destroying a human life (Exod. xxi, 28 sq. ; the same is presumable in Lev. xx, 15 sq.). See Law.
The process of stoning is nowhere described in the Bible; it only appears that the place of execution was outside the city (Lev. xxiv, 14; Numb, xv, 36; 1 Kings xxi, 10, 13; Acts vii, 56; comp. Mishna, Sanhedr. vi, 1 sq.), and that the witnesses threw the first stone upon the culprit (Deut. vii, 7 ; Acts vii, 57 sq.), in order to do which they <ii vested themselves of their outer garments so as to have the freer use of their hands (Joe. cit.). The Talmiulists give greater details as to the execution (Mishna, Sanhedr. vi, 3, 4; comp. Winer, Chreftom. Talm. |i. 1 sq. ; Otho, Lex. Rabb. \). ^dl sij.). Accord- ing to them, the offender, if of the male sex, was whol- ly divested of clotliing down to the jirivate parts, and if of the female sex, both before and behind; and then, after being raised upon a scaffold twice as high as a man, was thrown down backwards by one of the wit- nesses. If he was thereby killed, the penalty thus ful- filled upon him was called iT^n^, impulsio ; but if he survived this shock, it became the duty of tlie other witness to cast a large stone (see Lightfoot, llor. Ileb. p. 420) u|ion the criminal's heart; and if this were not fatal, the bystanders were to fall to stoning. According to some ral)bins (as Maimonides), the condemned man was treated to a bitter draught (wine mingled with myrrh or gall), in order to stupefy him. See Chuci- KixioN. How much of these details is of ancient or- igin it is impossible to dettrrainc. The precipitatiou
STOOL
1048
STORCH
of the culprit may have arisen from a false interpreta- tion of Exotl. xix, 13 (see H. Mieliaelis, in I'oti's .Si/I- h'jf, iv. l«t!); but this is im])rol)al)lc. and the allejiations lu'ainst thisTiihniutical moile of lapiilalion (Heinii 1>U- <^rt. p. !».■> «[. : Carpzov. .I;v»((/-. TriV. p. 5X4) are with- out wei^rlit. Moreover, stonioi; was a freipient resort of a moll (^a very old practice, Kxod. viii, 2G; xvii, 4), in ordir to aveni,'e itself on the spot npon such as had i-xcited popular ill-will (1 Sam. xxx, 6; 2 Chron. xxiv, •-'1 ; 2 Mace, i, Ki; Matt, xxi, 3a; Luke xx, 6; John x, U s<|. : xi. «: Acts v, 2t>; 2 Cor. xi, 25; .losephus, yl n/. \iv, 2, 1 ; xvi, 10, 5 ; War, ii, 1, 3 ; li), 5 ; Life, 13, 58), .•ven nmoni; the Jewish [and heathen] populace in for- eiirn cities (Acts xiv. 5, It'). It was likewise resorted to by the (ireek rabble (Herod, ix, 5; Thucyd. v, 60; I'ausan. viii. 5, 8; yEIian. Wir. Hist, v, 19; Curtius, vii, 2, 1; see Wachsmuth, UMen. Alterth. ii, 790 sq.), al- tliouijh the lej^itiraale practice of stoning occurs among I lie (ireeks. i.e. Macedonians (Curtius, vi, 11,38; Schol. ad Eiirip. On.^t. p. 432 ) ; so among the Spaniards (Strabo, iii. 155) and Persians (Ctesias, Fraf/m. c. 45, 50); even the provincial officers used this punishment (against the Jews) (I'hilo, 0;v>. ii, 542). B. Michaelis adduces an example among the (iermans in the Midtile .Ages {De Jmliciis Pwnisque Cnpit. § 6). See, generally, Carpzov, Apptir. Crit. p. 583 sq.; Selden, Jus Xaf. et lifiit. p. 534 sq. ; Ring, De Lupiilalione Hebraor. (Frcf. 171(;)._Wiiier, ii, 521 sq. See Punishment.